On October 13, the House Homeland Security Committee passed the Department of Homeland Security Authorization Act for FY 2012 (H.R. 3116) by a vote of 20-12. Similar legislation, S. 1546, was passed by the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee in September. The bipartisan legislation reauthorizes a number of Department of Homeland Security (DHS) programs, reaffirms the Committee’s support for first responder grant programs and provides additional direction to DHS regarding the permitted uses of grant funds.

Last week, the Department of Treasury released its final fiscal 2011 monthly report, which shows the federal government’s FY 2011 deficit was about $1.3 trillion, which was 21 percent ($347 billion) less than originally forecast. Outlays were $3.6 trillion, about a 4 percent increase over FY 2010, while receipts rose to $2.3 trillion, an increase of about $1.4 billion from FY 2010. Interest on the federal debt also continued to grow, rising about $30 billion in fiscal 2011 to $227 billion.

On October 11, the administration announced that it had selected 14 projects that will undergo expedited permitting and environmental reviews in order to speed up the construction process. The projects include replacing the Tappan Zee Bridge in New York, new equipment for the air traffic control system at two Houston airports, two water treatment plants in New Mexico and a retail and affordable housing complex in D.C. The expedited review plan follows a recommendation from the President’s Council on Jobs and Competitiveness.

On October 14, Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Kathleen Sebelius announced that the department is calling for a halt to the implementation of the Community Living Assistance Services and Supports program (CLASS Act). In a letter to congressional leaders, Secretary Sebelius noted the department was not able to develop a sustainable solution for the program. The Congressional Budget Office had scored CLASS as achieving $86 billion in savings over the next decade, because it would have collected premiums for five years before paying any benefits.

Last week, Representatives Jackie Speier (D-CA) and Steve Womack (R-AR) introduced the Marketplace Equity Act that would give states authority to compel online retailers to collect sales tax. The bill differs from the Main Street Fairness Act, an online sales tax bill introduced over the summer by Sen. Dick Durbin (D-IL), in that it would provide states with greater flexibility in how they craft their tax systems to conform with the law.

On Friday, the Department of Education announced that more than half the states have now notified the Department of their intent to request a waiver from key provisions of the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB). As of October 12, seventeen states (Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Indiana, Kentucky, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, New Jersey, New Mexico, North Carolina, North Dakota, Oklahoma, Tennessee, Vermont, and Wisconsin) had indicated their intent to request Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA) flexibility by November 14, 2011, for a December peer review.

Last week, Senator Tom Harkin (D-IA), Chairman of the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee introduced a comprehensive draft bill to reauthorize the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA), more popularly known as No Child Left Behind. The bill makes a number of significant changes to current law – particularly in the areas of accountability, low-performing schools, standards and teachers.

On October 12, Congress approved three pending bilateral free trade agreements (FTAs) between the United States and South Korea (H.R. 3080), Columbia (H.R. 3078) and Panama (H.R. 3079). The House approved the South Korea deal on a vote of 278-151, the Columbia deal 262-167 and the Panama deal 300-129. The Senate approved the South Korea measure 83-15, the Columbia FTA 66-33 and the Panama FTA on a vote of 77-22. The President is expected to quickly sign the three FTAs into law.

Even as the 12 members of the Joint Deficit Reduction Committee (supercommittee) continued private meetings this week, lawmakers and Pentagon officials continued to come out against the automatic cuts that would be triggered if the committee did not approve a deficit reduction deal of at least $1.2 trillion because of their impact on the Department of Defense. Senator John McCain (R-AZ) publicly stated that if the supercommittee failed to reach a deal to reduce the deficit, he would “be among the first on the floor to nullify that provision” calling for sequestration.

Last Friday marked the date by which congressional committees could officially submit recommendations to the Joint Select Committee (supercommittee) regarding their efforts to put together a $1.2 trillion deficit reduction plan. As such, on October 13, members of both chambers offered the supercommittee their recommendations. House Democrats centered their recommendations on increasing taxes and seeking additional funding for initiatives they say would ultimately spur job growth.